Small Group!

Here at Bykota House there is small group every Tuesday night. This Tuesday, it was my turn to teach on Romans 6:23 and the consequences of sin. I had no idea how it would go, since I am not normally with the Bykota kids and wasn't sure how they would react to me teaching them. Surprisingly, it went better than I had thought!  Because I'm not one of their usual teachers they responded better than they have at any of the small groups I have been at. It probably helped that my lesson was short. They even answered the questions I asked, though to be fair, they were pretty easy ones.

Getting set up.

 Tuesday was also the first day that the new worship band played. It was made up of Ratana, Hang, and Seth on guitar, Kayla playing the piano, and Tiffony and I singing. For only having two rehearsals it went pretty well.

Rehearsing

In other news, Kayla recently adopted Muggy, the Bergen's dog. She has taken to carrying him around the house. He is such a sweetheart, padding after Kayla all day. The kids adore him and are always asking Kayla if they can play with him. Muggy's parents are Windy and Stormy (anyone sensing a pattern here?) who are two of the Benz's dogs. Muggy is part of the ongoing effort to turn me into a dog person.

Muggy curled up with Tiffony.

A Little Update and A Lot of Pictures

These last few weeks here have been pretty hard. After attempting to digest several pieces of unexpected and saddening news from home, it has been difficult to focus on why I'm really here. The kids and the other inters have been amazing. The other day during school, SJ offered to pray and said, "Please help Miss Faith not to be sad anymore and help us not to have school." I'm doing better than I was and every day is a good one when I have these littles.

Thank you for all of your support, I genuinely appreciate it. To thank you, I have a boatload of pictures below. Please enjoy!

SJ and Melody. He always begs me to let him hold her.

We finished school early one day, so we played Candyland!

I'm the kids favorite toy!

Sarah says hello

A rare moment when they are all seated properly.

SJ

My wall gecko. Thankfully, he hasn't been around enough to warrant a name.

This is Kayla on the way home from picking up Muggy, the Bergen's dog that she is adopting. As you can tell, she is very excited (and the roads were bumpy).

How do you defeat a Dalek? Let Leah at it.

Or Melody

The building on the left is a store, the equivalent of a Dash In or  7- 11. I believe that the one on the right is a house. Out in province, these are the most popular types of buildings. Most don't have electricity or air conditioning. They are little more than wooden shacks. However, some have been updated with modern conveniences. Makes my bedroom and bathroom seem like a luxury.

My kiddos doing their math.

Abby loves to climb on me and be picked up "like an airplane!"

She also loves to tickle.

The kids playing twister during our monthly birthday party.

SJ and Snap

Tiffony leading the elementary kids in song.

Tiffony and Kayla with Gina and Linda.

The letters I have received so far. Thank you for thinking of me!

My favorite times are when I get to watch Baby Melody!

Skyping with my AWANA girls. Its always a good day when I see them first thing!

Leah playing the piano.

Thank you for taking the time to read this! I'm not one of those people who take a lot of pictures, but I will try to be better.

 If you would like to help support BYKOTA House, whether it be through prayer or financially, please check out my How to Help page.

A Letter to You

Dear Person Reading This Letter-

First off, I would like to apologize for not updating this blog in a while. I know that you enjoy hearing about what I am up to. It is a wonderful to hear that someone actually reads this.

I have not posted anything lately because this past week or so has been full of unfortunate news from home. Because of this, I have decided to draw my journey here to a close in mid- December in order to be with my family.  I would like to thank you for your prayers while I have been here and would ask that you pray for my extended family. It truly means a lot to me that you have supported me in my decision to serve here in Cambodia. I look forward to seeing you when I return.

With Love-

Faith 

Bathrooms

I never thought that I would get excited at the prospect of brushing my teeth with tap water. This is and interesting way to start a blog post, but I thought that my bathroom is best way to illustrate the differences between how I live in Cambodia and how you all back in the US live. This is my bathroom here in Cambodia-

As you can see, it is all one room. the shower and the toilet are all in one tiny cubicle. I have no sink and even if I did, I would not be able to use it for anything other than washing my hands, as the water is not clean. Instead, I brush my teeth over the drain next to the toilet. I am fortunate to have both a hot water heater and a western toilet.

Although some people may see this as a hardship, I don't. It just makes me appreciate what I have back home. Appreciate what you have, especially if it is something that you take for granted every day, like clean tap water.